Survivors
by SophieAngel69
Summary: Many brave warriors fought in the battle against the Zebak, and they all lost. All who returned from the battle would agree, those who died were lucky.


_**Authors Warning: This entire story is violent, graphic, and down right traumatic at times, if all turns out well. If you cannot handle that, I urge you to stop reading now.**_

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Once again their ancient enemy had attacked. The Zebak had turned their hungry eyes on the land which many called their home. It was a large, rich, and plentiful land, had the Zebak simply asked they would have happily shared their land with another. But the Zebak were not ones to share, they wanted it to be theirs, and no one elses.

Marlie stood on the coast with the travellers and Marris, united as one to protect their home. There had long ago been an arrangement made with the travellers; they would house the people of Rin and offer them safe transport to the coast where they would fight, and in exchange, all those of the travellers who were not prepared to fight would remain in Rin with the peaceful villagers who had no place in a fight. Marlie thought of her husband and child back home, Allun was no warrior and Forley so young. Marlie had wanted to name the child after her mother, so she and Allun had agreed that if it were a boy it would be named after his father, and a girl, after her mother. It mattered not the child's name, her family was in danger, and she would fight to save them, even if it meant her death.

When the Zebak came her heart filled with dread. They were so many, too many...

Marlie fought until she could fight no more. As she fought a sword cut deep into her right arm, causing her to drop her own and fall in pain and shock. The young woman was about to get to her feet and continue the fight when a blow to the head knocked her to the ground and a heavy metal boot stomped on her throat, causing her to fight for breath. Marlie the weaver, a strong proud girl of Rin, one who had faced the mysterious terrors of the mountain, was left there gasping for breath through a bruised throat as she watched the battle unfold.

Many were killed, but all those too injured to fight were left where they fell, to fight a battle against their own injuries. Finally the lack of air was too much and Marlie succumbed to the encroaching blackness of sleep which she knew meant death.

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Marlie had not expected to survive so when she woke to find herself still on the blood soaked beach she was beyond surprised. Her throat was in terrible pain and breathing was agony, but Marlie was a fighter. She coughed in an attempt to clear the crowded airway but it felt as though her throat was torn in two. The injured girl had to bring her shaky hand to her throat to ensure it was not slit. The skin was bruised and tender, but she could still breathe, and that was what mattered.

"We've got another one!" A rough voice announced and Marlie felt strong hands grip her shoulders. The brunette cried out in pain as she was pulled to her feet by her injured arm, the scream only serving to worsen her throat and she whimpered at the pain it caused. The man who held her only laughed and dragged her along the beach.

The blood soaked girl tried to walk but she was weak and could hardly breathe. She was dumped in a heap besides other injured fighters. Some travellers she did not know but Marlie recognised Timon's unconscious form with a large cut down the left side of his face, Bronden holding a leg that was mangled beyond belief, but it was Jiller who caught the younger woman's attention. Her dear friend's wife lay clutching her stomach, crying in pain and fear, with her clothes soaked in blood.

Slowly and painfully Marlie crawled towards the crying woman, ignoring everyone else around her. Her right arm was all but useless and her left was complaining at the strain as she made her was towards the expectant mother. "Jiller?" She whispered with a croaky voice, wincing at the pain it caused.

The dark haired woman looked up and met Marlie's eyes. The tears ran even faster as she viewed her friend. "It hurts," she admitted in agony. "Oh Marlie it hurts." The older woman fell into her arms and Marlie held her as tight as she could, noting how Jiller's arms were wrapped firmly around her bloody stomach.

Marlie was a mother, she understood Jiller's pain, with her unborn child so injured, it most likely would not survive, if it were not dead already.

"Alright scum!" Another gravely voice called. "You are slaves, you will do as you are told and you will not put up a fight, is that understood?" The Zebak warrior asked.

"We will never serve you!" Bronden yelled and the guards just laughed.

"Boys," one of the soldiers began. "You may break the whore's spirit however you like," she offered and the soldiers approached Bronden.

Once of them stomped on her broken leg and they all laughed at her scream of pain. They enjoyed her screams as they smacked her about and Marlie watched in horror as they tore off the strong woman's clothes. The brutal men only laughed at Bronden's terror as they violated her body. Marlie wanted to cry out, she wanted to do something, anything to save the girl such pain. She and Bronden had never been friends but no one deserved such treatment.

Marlie was grabbed from behind and pulled away from the crying woman in her arms. "Don't think you whores are getting off easy." A gruff voice taunted.

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_**Authors Note: I'm not going to lie, this story will be awful, there will be no happy ending and many people will suffer. If anyone has read my other story Slaves, this is Marlie's version and sheds some light on Allun's actions.**_

_**~SophieAngel69**_


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